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(What I've Learned in One Minute)

One-minute lessons on student life, productivity, and personal growth — every Wednesday.Join the free community of students and young adults today.

I’m Motheo, originally from Botswana and now studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Bath. Coming here was a dream of mine for years, but once I arrived, I faced something I didn’t expect — the challenge of finding my purpose. For a while, I put my values in the wrong things and lost sight of why I was actually in the UK— my family, personal growth, and for the dreams I had carried with me for so long.Over time, I’ve had to learn to slow down and appreciate the fact that I’m in the place I once prayed to be in, to be more patient with myself than I thought I needed to be, and to understand that sometimes a successful week is just making your bed, doing laundry, and eating proper meals. I’ve also learned a lot about navigating friendships and staying open to new people, because the ones you’re meant to meet don’t always appear right away, and lastly, to journal the changes along the way — because looking back, you realise how far you’ve actually come.One lesson I keep relearning is that I have to believe in myself. Confidence doesn’t arrive all at once, it grows through small, healthy habits that keep me steady even when motivation dips.My deeper why goes back to Botswana, to a day at Tlhabologo Primary School that changed me forever. I was tutoring there, and when I asked the kids what they wanted to be when they grew up, their answers were nothing like what I expected. Some said they wanted to play with their mum. Others said they wanted to visit a water park or simply eat a good meal every day. Dreams so simple, yet so powerful — things I had grown up taking for granted. That day, I realised that the dreams I carried weren’t just ambitions, they were blessings. And from then on, my dream became more than chasing my own goals. It became about helping others believe in themselves too, and giving as many kids as possible the chance to dream big.